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What do the head J. Crew, the CEO of Google, a former vice president and the first woman elected chair of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association (now known as the Personal Care Council) have in common? They're now all on Apple's board of directors!
Monday's addition of Andrea Jung, the current chairman and CEO of Avon Products, to Apple's board may seem a bit puzzling a first, but a closer look at her bio shows that Apple is likely banking on her experience as a strong marketer. Jung recently helped revitalize Avon's stock by 15 percent over in the past year, and has spearheaded the company's first worldwide ad campaign. She's also helped trim the fat (so to speak), doing away with less than profitable products and slashing jobs. Apple may not be having cash flow troubles, but as its stable of products grows, the company could certainly use an adroit marketer.
In general, tech companies also like to round out their boards with a diverse group -- the theory being that certain best practices transcend industries.
Barring that, Jung also serves on the board of directors of the General Electric, parent company of NBC Universal. As one Macrumors commentor noted, given the recent falling out between NBC and Apple, Jung may be in a good position to help the companies solve their differences and possibly get NBC shows and Univeral movies back on iTunes. Universal, as we noted today, is supposedly the only studio not talking with Apple about movie rentals.
